Follow minute-by-minute commentary of the Premier League game between
Manchester City and Liverpool at Etihad Stadium on Tuesday Jan 3, 2012,
kick-off 20.00 GMT.

WRAP: You didn't miss a great deal in those four minutes of injury time. A couple of prowls by Yaya Toure with the ball, a couple by Adam Johnson without. This was one of those games where I think we can safely put the result to one side. City took their goals well, and scored them at just the right moments to knock the Christmas stuffing out of Liverpool. Vincent Kompany was magnificent, but only because he was putting in Kolo Toure's shift as well. I suspect Joleon Lescott might be marching straight back into the team once he's properly rested. Elsewhere Joe Hart was again so-so, Dzeko did nothing, and all the players that are usually excellent - Richards, Yaya, Silva, Milner - were again excellent. So what did we learn about City tonight? Not a great deal.

Liverpool, on the other hand, I actually feel more optimistic for after tonight. In the absence of Suarez, they created plenty of chances, they just needed a born poacher to finish them. They spent £35 million on what they thought was a born poacher, but once one or two roll in for Carroll you suspect he might go on a run. There is no reason why the Torres logic should necessarily apply to him too. He deserves a run in the side. Gerrard looks as though he will improve the team significantly when he returns, Glen Johnson had another tidy game and Stewart Downing showed that actually, he plays better on the left than the right. Counter-intuitive it may sound, but taking a long view, it wasn't too bad a night for Liverpool.

Oh, and Gareth Barry got sent off. Anyone remember that? What an odd game this was. Thanks for all your emails - all of them, even the mean ones - and good night.

FULL TIME Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

90+3 min What on earth has Kyei Gabriel got against whimsical Brummie comedian Jasper Carrott? "Kenny needs to go to the market for a striker this January," he writes. "Carrott is killing us."

90+2 minBen Long has ideas for yellow-card equivalents for a manager. "How about only allowing him to speak in his native tongue whilst on the sidelines, or issuing orders using only Benitez-esque hand gestures or charades via his assistants?"

90 min Gerrard with another low shot! Saved low by Hart. I wouldn't get too upset about this, Liverpool fans. Your boys have played very well tonight. The round thing just hasn't gone into the netty thing. Sometimes it's just that simple. Four minutes of injury time.

89 min Maxi Rodriguez squanders another fine chance! It's all academic now, of course, but as Gerrard's curling shot from 20 yards is knocked to his left by Hart, Maxi closes in and tries to lift the ball over the advancing Hart from a tight angle. Instead, he shanks it wide.

88 min Carroll wants a penalty as the ball is delivered low into the area. Carroll did get half a toe on it, but there was minimal contact. Mostly there, he just lost balance. The look of disgust on Kompany's face as Carroll appeals for a penalty is priceless. It's one of the all time great looks. There you are, Vincent. That look has secured your 10 out of 10.

87 min "Am now getting stick for taking time out to email on girlfriends birthday," writes Ian Pimlott. I just can't believe your girlfriend had the temerity to have a birthday on a night when you clearly needed to send an email. Gerrard tries to cross from the right. Clichy - who's also been excellent tonight - with the block, and it's out for a throw.

86 min The ball refuses to go in for Liverpool! Clever interplay between Gerrard and Johnson. Gerrard makes the dummy run, Johnson drills it in towards Maxi, Maxi turns and shoots, but the ball skews off the outside of his boot and floats wide.

85 min Again Kompany snuffs out a Liverpool attack. If we're giving marks out of 10 for performances, Kompany's been dangerously close to a 10 tonight. It's hard to see how he could have played better.

83 min Enrique with the diagonal cross from deep, looking for Carroll. Hart comes to catch. "Isn't it a bookable offence to brandish an imaginary card?" asks Anthony Wall. Yes, it is, but Mancini's a manager. Sending him to the stands is probably more akin to a red card offence. What would a yellow card be? Sending him halfway up the steps? Sending him to the stands, but with a really big megaphone?

82 min Cracking email from Peter Littley. "When you say 'Only Carroll in the area', do you mean 'only Carroll' as in it's only him, no need to get concerned. Or do you mean Carroll is all alone and looking for company, or Kompany? As you see I avoided mentioning Reuters." Gerrard with a shot from distance that whistles just over.

80 min "I need to go to an eye specialist first thing in morning," writes Arshad. I can't see qualities in Henderson which Kenny does. He is omnipresent in the team but he's been our weakest link throughout the season." I remember everyone saying the same about Lucas a few years ago. Give Henderson time, he's labouring under a price tag he didn't give himself.

79 min It's just not happening for Liverpool, is it? Plenty of neat passes in the City area, but they just can't catch the break that would lead to a clear opportunity. City break with Dzeko - who, if you remember, Liverpool were trying to sign a year ago - and the ball is tapped back to Adam Johnson, who hits the post with a low curling shot!

78 min Hart comes for the cross and misses it completely! It comes out to Downing on the right, who curls over a nice cross with his weaker foot. Headed clear, out to Enrique 30 yards out, whose shot on the volley is the space shuttle Nasa never decommissioned.

77 min Substitutions, one for each side. Silva is replaced by Lescott, Spearing by Maxi Rodriguez. How on earth are Liverpool losing this game 3-0? How? Carroll wins a corner from Toure after a tackle in the City area.

75 min GOAL! Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool (Milner pen) A long ball over the top of the Liverpool defence, into the left channel for Yaya Toure to chase. Toure had Skrtel and Agger in close attendance, and as he tried to turn inside onto his right foot he just let the ball slip away from him. But Skrtel was stepping across his path at the same time, Toure took the tumble, and Andre Marriner pointed to the spot. I think that's terribly harsh on Liverpool. Super penalty by Milner, by the way, high to Reina's left.

74 min PENALTY TO MANCHESTER CITY Ooooh, harsh! Roberto Mancini's waving an imaginary red card at the referee! Skrtel stays on the pitch, but Milner with the spot kick...

72 min RED CARD Manchester City (Barry) Two of the most casual yet cynical fouls you will ever see conspire to get a player sent off. Carroll was running towards goal - well, Carroll was moving towards goal, and Barry simply stepped into his path, barged him over with a stout shoulder, and then as he jogged away raised both palms in that way a guilty player does.

70 min "Andy Carroll has struggled to make an impression," reckons Alan Smith on Sky. I beg to differ. Carroll has in fact made quite a passable impression of a postbox with a ponytail. Gerrard with a free-kick from about 45 yards out. Gosh, that's terrible. Straight to Richards on the penalty spot, who heads it away.

68 min City are resorting to humping long balls down the channel for Aguero to chase. If Liverpool end this match without a goal, they're going to wonder how the hell it happened. City'll probably get two or three more on the break.

67 min "Disappointed in Reina this season," writes Ian Pimlott. "A good defence has been let down by his sloppiness at times, not the usual standard."

65 min Andy Wasef has spent some time considering his response to my childish smackdown and delivered his hypothesis for the decline of traditional print media. It's incredibly long, contains the word 'Reuters' in it and is about an interesting as it sounds. Meanwhile, Gerrard tries to swing a cross in from the right. Four City defenders (plus four more to bring off the bench if they want) and only Carroll in the area. Headed away.

63 min Corner to Liverpool on their left. Decent spell of pressure, this. They take it quickly. Bellamy hoists a high cross to the back post, and for once Carroll beats Kompany in the air. Not that he can get any power behind the header, though; it's an easy catch for Hart.

62 min Gerrard and Bellamy combining on the left. I'm finding it impossible to work out where Gerrard's playing. He's been everywhere so far. About the only place he hasn't turned up is in goal. Dzeko with a rushed clearance from the cross.

60 min Steve McClaren has a lot to answer for. Because of him, no football manager can ever hold an umbrella on the touchline ever again. Poor Roberto Mancini's getting his suit absolutely drenched. If the poor mite catches cold, it's Steve McClaren's fault.

59 min Bellamy with a cross from a tight spot on the left. Headed away by City. Clichy gets the better of Johnson to see the ball out for a goal kick. Possession in this half: City 34% Liverpool 66%. Yikes.

58 min What's this, now? Bit of handbags? Nothing at all spicy in that, it's just a load of men standing around talking to each other with their chins out. Andre Marriner breaks it up before the talking threatens to descend into gossiping, or something, and we're playing again.

56 min Yellow card for Johnson after a foul on Silva. And the moment is here, ladies and gentlemen. Liverpool are bringing on their first two substitutes... and they are, as trailed, Gerrard and Bellamy. Adam and Kuyt the men to make way.

55 min Gosh, the rain really is pelting down out there. Gerrard grimacing as he unzips his tracksuit. Then again, there's plenty of reasons he could be grimacing. Not least the fact that, match fitness or no match fitness, Jay Spearing's starting ahead of him.

53 min It surely can't be long before we see Gerrard. Surely. Possibly Bellamy too. The neutral craves a Liverpool goal. What a finish that would make.

51 min Another header away from Kompany, who's having a monstrously good game tonight. Agger with the ball in defence for Liverpool. What can Agger do, do, do?

50 min Kompany with another powerful defensive header. "Did Father Christmas ever really 'leak' goals?" wonders Damian. "That implies his generosity was some kind of failing or pathology. i think of him as giving freely, with a twinkle in his eye, knowing his reward was stored up in heaven. Like Bruce Grobbelaar."

49 min "What is it with Liverpool fans?" says Ben Howard. "Why can they not take the Liverpool-Bias-Goggles off? If they did, just for a second, they’d see quite how outrageous their behaviour in ‘support’ of Suarez is." Right, I'm calling time on Suarez now. This is getting quite exciting. Downing's cross for Carroll, and it's headed away by Kompany.

48 min Super run by Micah Richards, who danced towards Spearing and Enrique before realising he could just muscle his way straight past them. Eventually Enrique gets it away.

47 min Kompany heads it away. But Liverpool come again, with Johnson galloping down the right and sending in a deep cross that's only fractionally too deep for Carroll.

46 min Henderson has a cross blocked. Spearing fouled by Gareth Barry, and he's got to be careful there, Barry! Free-kick to Liverpool about 40 yards out. Adam to take.

21.02 Right, a can of Coke Zero in front of me, and we're ready to go again.

20.56 Now, an email from Andy Wasef, and I've been saving this one.

"I think you may be under some misguided delusion that you're funny. Blurting offensive remarks is a country mile away from humour.

"Serious question for you. Do you and your fellow myopic 'journalists' in the British sports press actually believe the ---- you're spouting about the Suarez case or is it just for effect? I'd long ago come to expect poor journalism, but plain stupidity makes one understand why revenues in your industry continue to fall off a cliff.

"You do understand that there is no proof or facts that he said anything of the kind you mention, just one man's word against another's, that an apparently professional panel claim to be 'probably' true, despite a whole slew of the report suggesting they are unlikely to be so? If Suarez genuinely did say those words, then how on earth could they deem him not to be racist?

"'Fair and balanced' reporting seems to have left your trade long ago, pity as once upon a time it was respected, now you're just a group of loudmouths enjoying a day in the sun and taking any route possible to get an extra reader."

Actually, Andy, Suarez admitted saying the word negro, so what does that make it, two on none? And the reason newspapers are dying is because we let keyboard cowards like you read our work for free.

20.54 An email from Gurjit Dhallu. "I put money on City to win at evens even though I'm a United fan who really doesn't care for Liverpool and City can do us a favour tonight. You could call me conflicted."

20.53 "The result is inexplicable," writes Africa Moyo. "How on earth would Liverpool leak goals as if they were Father Christmas (eight days after the celebrations)? I wonder if Liverpool are doing this deliberately to frustrate Man United following the Evra/Suarez spat."

20.52 But first, that first half. And Liverpool have a right to feel a little stunned as they disappear down that tunnel. It's been a fairly even game, to be honest with you. In fact, you might even argue, with only a little fancy, that Liverpool have created more in the final third. But a howler from Pepe Reina and a towering header from Yaya Toure - putting to shame the player Liverpool signed for £35 million to put away towering headers - and Liverpool are suddenly 2-0 down. That's how champions win. They win so stealthily you can't even tell you've lost.

HALF-TIME Manchester City 2-0 Liverpool And there it is. Stay tuned, I've got some absolutely cracking emails to share with you.

45 min First yellow card of the game, and it goes to Gareth Barry. Late, late clip on Spearing. One minute of injury time.

44 min Agger in a spot of bother after letting the ball get stuck under his feet as he tried to clear. Dzeko comes away with the ball, but he's going away from goal, then lets the ball slip from his control, and then gives away a foul trying to get it back.

43 min Another excellent chance for Liverpool, and this time it fell to Kuyt! Cross from the left from Downing, Carroll leaps at the back post to head it back across goal, Kuyt tries to swipe it in from six yards, and Kompany puts in a magnificent block.

41 min Silva provides the world with a much-needed glimpse of his fallibility as he lifts the free-kick well over the bar. Another City goal and it really is game over. There aren't many teams you would give even the slightest hope of overturning a two-goal deficit at Eastlands, but Liverpool are one of them.

40 min Foul by Adam on Milner. City get a free-kick about 25 yards out, and Adam another Liverpool player slightly fortunate to stay out of the book.

39 min "When you say 'Olga Korbut' I presume you mean 'Zebedee from the Magic Roundabout'," writes Damian in reference to my Carroll reference at 24 minutes. Oh come on, he was brilliant for about twelve weeks.

38 min Kolo Toure - whenever I say 'Toure' and I'm slagging him off, it's Kolo, whenever I'm praising him, it's Yaya, just so you know - loses the ball to Carroll in his own corner and has to scramble to put the ball out for a throw.

37 min Meanwhile, in the Telegraph Live Blog Race Row!

"I too will be taking appropriate action," writes Henk Beentje. "I have been testing various live bloggers during recent Liverpool matches, and wasn't keen on most. You, on the other hand, Mr un-English named journo, are OK - funny, enough posts to keep me going, amd interesting. OK, you're no great LFC fan, but I'll balance that out myself. My action? I'll be following you more."

This just gets better and better.

36 min Downing, who's been very good so far, gets down the left and manages to thread a low cross in towards Carroll. Carroll tries to flick it with his left foot low towards the far post, and it's just wide.

35 min Milner crosses from the left. Reina gets there ahead of Dzeko. Meanwhile, Sunderland have gone a goal up at the DW Stadium against Wigan.

33 min GOAL! Manchester City 2-0 Liverpool (Yaya Toure) Carbon copy, and this time it goes in! The corner came in from the right this time, Yaya Toure rose highest, glanced it towards goal, Reina leapt but the ball kissed the bar and nestled in the back of the net! Vital, vital goal!

33 min Oh, what a save by Reina! Fantastic! Kompany just got ahead of Skrtel at the near post and flicked the corner towards goal, and that was a wonderful acrobatic save by Reina to put it over for another corner.

32 min Milner feeds it in towards the near post. Dzeko tries to turn and wins the corner.

31 min City scream for handball! Aguero and Skrtel in the area with the ball bobbling around, it ran up off Skrtel's boot and hit his outstretched arm, but Andre Marriner's satisfied that was unavoidable.

30 min Henderson tries to redeem himself with a deep, curling cross from the right wing. It's deep all right, but straight into the crowd. Now, I'm a big fan of Henderson's, but at the moment he seems to be alternating encouraging games with disappointing ones, as if attempting to dissaude fantasy football managers the world over from messing with him.

29 min It's Henderson. The City wall eats it whole.

28 min Adam fouled on the edge of the City area by Toure, who's looked just half a touch off the pace so far. Who's going to take this? Adam? Henderson's there. Agger's hovering too.

27 min "Some of your emailers need to loosen up! " writes Seamus Gallen. "I'm surprised that Suarez is not playing in this vital game. LFC have until the 13th January to appeal, so they could have saved their 'acceptance' until after tonight's game. Perhaps they've given up on the league? Or Carroll has promised to shape up? Or the others have promised him some service, like he used to get at Newcastle?"

I think it might have something to do with the fact that assuming Oldham don't put them out of the FA Cup, Suarez will finish his suspension just in time for... the trip to Old Trafford. His first game back. Gosh, football, I love you sometimes. Unusually, almost everyone in the country will be hoping Liverpool brush Oldham aside this weekend.

25 min And now Henderson tries his luck from distance! Hart watches that whoosh wide, but Liverpool are having a very good spell...

24 min Adam lifts the cross to the back post. Carroll beaten to the header by Toure. Now, the old Carroll, he would have leapt like Olga Korbut and buried that. I'm sure of it.

23 min Liverpool with a free-kick from 25 yards. Adam takes it, it's low and curling, and Hart pushes it away. The ball comes back in, Kuyt tries to cross from the right, and it's a corner to Liverpool.

22 minBarry Glendenning of the Guardian has made a joke on Twitter that's so good I'm just going to steal it wholesale. "Have Liverpool released a statement about Reina's error yet, saying he didn't make one?"

21 min Almost a second moment of horror for Reina! This time it wasn't his fault, but it wouldn't have consoled Reina any if Dzeko's left-footed shot from 20 yards had crept in after taking a humongous deflection off Agger.

"If there is one thing the whole Suárez/Evra case has shown us, is that it is unacceptable, even in jest, to take someone's nationality, race or belief and make slanderous, libellous or racist comments about it. Even if your supposed quote was meant as a joke, it is at the very least in poor taste, and probably borderline racist. Like one of your previous readers has threatened, I too shall be reporting you to your editor and hope that he sees fit to take appropriate action against you."

The rate it's going, by the end of the night I'll have enough writs to start my own hotel. Hotel stroke savoury cracker firm.

18 min More like it from Liverpool. Passing it around in the City half with purpose and intent, but not rushing things. Downing, to Adam, to Henderson, and Liverpool win a corner.

17 min And now Carroll brings down Clichy with an agricultural scythe. There's the odd referee out there who might have been tempted to book him for that. He stays clean, though.

16 min Carroll with his first header at goal! His momentum was taking him away from goal as he met Kuyt's cross at around the penalty spot, and it goes well over. Meanwhile, an unfortunate tweet from Lucas about nine minutes into the match:

&lt;noframe&gt;Twitter: Lucas Leiva - Well Done Pepe&lt;/noframe&gt;

15 min "I am glad Liverpool are not appealing the Suarez ban," writes Africa Moyo from Harare, a United fan. "It's fitting given the magnitude of the allegations. In this day and age, racism has no place. But I wish Dalglish a great night."

13 min City fans singing the Mancini song. Mancini said earlier in the week that he liked it when they sang his name "to the tune of Volare". You can well imagine the reaction of City fans to that. "What the hell's Volare?" "It's the Mancini song, I think." "Oh." Silva tries to lob Reina now from about 20 yards, but Reina catches comfortably enough.

12 min That unexpected goal has infinitely energised City. Barry tries to slide in on Enrique as he tries to wriggle clear on the Liverpool left, and fouls him.

10 min GOAL! Manchester City 1-0 Liverpool (Aguero) Oh, shocker! A complete shocker by Pepe Reina! Kuyt lost possession after a Liverpool throw in, Barry poked it to Silva, Silva slipped it to Aguero and Aguero's shot from 20 yards was curling, but should never have made it in. Reina was diving to make a comfortable save and then... did it dip at the last moment? Either way, it should never have snuck under him, and that's the kind of error Reina will make maybe every season or maybe every other season. Perhaps City's luck is beginning to change. They lead!

9 min Dzeko now at the near post! Corner. Silva dances down the left, teasing Skrtel, threatning to dart this way and then that. Eventually he slides it to Dzeko at the near post, but that was the first touch of a Leyland DAF. It took him away from goal, and his weak shot was bundled behind, safety-first by Reina.

7 min Hart! Great save! Downing should have put Liverpool in front there! He was clean through after a perfectly-timed run and a perfectly-judged through ball, and he tried to slide it low under Hart, but Hart managed to block it away!

6 min Gosh, that was dangerous for Liverpool! Micah Richards leaps off the right touchline with the force of a caged lioness and charges inside towards goal. He slips the ball to Aguero, who touches it on to Dzeko. Dzeko should really just hit that from eight yards, but instead he tries to take a touch and take it past Johnson, and the ball eventually trickles through to Reina.

5 min "I am relieved," says Graeme Walker, presumably in response to Liverpool's decision not to challenge Suarez's suspension. "Though I hope a loyal Liverpool fan would consider their relationship with them finished, unless they had behaved correctly over the Luis Suarez racism business. I realise that Liverpool FC now has a major problem. But if it was down to me, Suarez would be fired and Dalglish would be thinking hard." Dalglish always thinks hard. That's why his neck is gradually sinking into his body. It's the weight of his whirring brain forcing it downwards.

3 min Barry tries to clip a diagonal ball into Aguero. Skrtel spots the danger, takes a step forward, and bunts it away. On the basis of the the first three minutes, I'm sticking by my prediction of 0-0.

2 min City easing themselves into the contest with a spell of possession. Liverpool drop back and maintain their shape.

1 min Liverpool pressing strongly at the start of this game, Adam almost managing to nick the ball off Toure on the edge of the City area.

19.59 One last email before we begin as the teams are out on the pitch. It's from William Walsh. "While the questions immediately start on how Andy Carroll will respond over the next eight matches, many deserve the same question. Collectively, Kuyt, Henderson and Downing have scored one goal in the first half of the season. The goal drought spreads across the team and most of the players need to step up and start to find the back of the net rather than the woodwork."

19.55 "What happens if Andy Carroll refuses to speak to white people?" asks Shane O'Leary. "And why can't I get odds on that at Betunfair?"

19.52 We're only three days into the new year, but I've just received will surely be a contender for my greatest email of the year. My first email of the year! Here it is, courtesy of Barry Ward:

"Hello, Liverpool football club hater.

I've just read your pathetic article in the Telegraph and I can honestly say you have all my pity.

Why do idiots like yourself constantly feel the need to slate LFC every chance you get. Jealousy? Of course it is.

Have you ever kicked a football you sad pathetic excuse for a man?

Oh and by the way, your daft article shows you to be a racist so I will be sending in a complaint about you to your editor and also the police."

End quote. Start laughter. Honestly, where do you start with something like that? The fact that Liverpool FC now apparently counts as a race? Of course I've never kicked a football in my life. I'm allergic to Mitre. Still, if there's any consolation contained within that email, it's the disclosure that the correspondent will shortly be in contact with the police. Asking for it, or what?

19.49 "Sometimes we need to receive criticism because I think that we are a strong team, we should have concentration until the end," says Roberto Mancini of the firecracker he issued after the defeat to Sunderland on Sunday. "I think that we were really unlucky because we had so many shots. This is football: sometimes you don't deserve to lose. It was incredible."

19.45 "Luis has made a brilliant statement," says Kenny Dalglish. "We stand right by him. There is plenty more I would like to say. But I won't." Cripes. What Kenny's essentially saying is that if there were some sort of Statement Oscars, that effort from Luis Suarez attempting to justify his use of a racial epithet against a fellow professional would sweep the board. None of this is happening. Someone pinch me. Not you, Suarez.

19.30 So here are your teams. No racists in either starting XI. Which is not to say there might have been, only that CAN WE START TALKING ABOUT FOOTBALL PLEASE JONATHAN YES ALL RIGHT THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

Six outfield substitutes for Manchester City, of which four are defenders and two midfielders. What if Roberto Mancini wants to put on another attacking player to change the game? Will he simply order Sheikh Mansour to buy Steven Gerrard and arrange to have a City kit sent down to the Liverpool bench at once?

Still, City are pretty much as expected. Liverpool make just one change, bringing Dirk Kuyt back for Craig Bellamy. Steven Gerrard is not rushed off the bench, to the extent that Gerrard can rush these days, which is of course not very much. Kuyt's a shrewd change. He's a wily old campaigner. He always does well in games like this.

19.20 There is, of course, news to bring you, if you haven't already heard. Liverpool have decided not to appeal against the eight-match ban handed to Luis Suarez for refusing to speak to blacks. The ban thus takes effect immediately, which means no Luis Suarez for Liverpool tonight, which in turn raises all kinds of questions. Is this Andy Carroll's time to shine? Will Liverpool have to change the way they play? And what does this mean for Kenny Dalglish's side in the longer term? Has Suarez's moment of madnes/cultural misunderstanding put the Reds out of the Premier League title race? And if so, does that make Suarez a Premier League title racist?

Suarez has released a statement only about six paragraphs shorter than the Bible pleading his innocence yet accepting his suspension. Some choice bits:

"...I was born into a very humble family, in a working class neighbourhood, in a small country. But I was born and raised learning what respect, manners and sacrifice mean. Thanks to my family, from my first club where I started playing, to my transfer to Holland in Europe, I learned the values which made me the person I am now. Never, I repeat, never, have I had any racial problem with a team mate or individual who was of a different race or colour to mine. Never.

"I am very upset by all the things which have been said during the last few weeks about me, all of them being very far from the truth. But above all, I'm very upset at feeling so powerless whilst being accused of something which I did not, nor would not, ever do.

"In my country, 'negro' is a word we use commonly, a word which doesn't show any lack of respect and is even less so a form of racist abuse. Based on this, everything which has been said so far is totally false.

"I will carry out the suspension with the resignation of someone who hasn't done anything wrong and who feels extremely upset by the events.

He didn't actually say the last sentence. He actually ends the statement with "YNWA" (You'll Never Win Again). To which the only appropriate response is "BARF". When will Liverpool realise that deriving a cogent moral credo from a Gerry and the Pacemakers song simply makes them look a bit dim?

19.00 Eastlands tonight will be a cauldron of noise, a fitting backdrop to the latest instalment in the Premier League title that nobody appears to want. Despite faltering just a little in recent weeks, Manchester City remain utterly impregnable at home - nine league games, nine league wins, 28 goals scored, 99 bibs successfully put on. Teams have drawn against Manchester City and teams have beaten Manchester City, but only Bayern Munich have really looked like they knew what they were doing against them. Though they lead the Premier League on goal difference alone, it is still City who set its tempo. You still feel that the title is theirs to lose rather than for others to seize.

Despite turning over Newcastle the other night and looking thoroughly impressive in the process, Liverpool are still a team with some convincing to do. They have often proved more effective on their travels than at home, as wins at Arsenal, Everton and two at Chelsea have shown. Perhaps they strain a little too hard at home, the ceaseless roar of the Anfield crowd perhaps coaxing them into trying to force the pace too hard. Liverpool are far better when they keep the ball on the ground and search patiently for an opening. Coincidentally, that's how City like to play as well. Which is why my prediction for tonight's game is 0-0.

Do hang around, though. There's going to be jokes and memes and tweets and things.